has heaped praise on fans for helping her heal from past pain and allowing her to be ‘vulnerable’ again.
The musician, 35, along with , both 36, made seismic waves last year when they revealed N-Dubz was reforming after an 11-year hiatus, and the fans went wild.
After a sold-out reunion tour, including four nights at ’s arena, the trio have now , and are basking in the euphoria from supporters who always held out hope they would return.
Speaking to Metro.co.uk ahead of Timeless’ release, Tulisa revealed this love has helped alleviate strains and anxieties from highly-publicised ‘drama’ from the last time she was in the spotlight – from X Factor bullying claims to a collapsed drug trial after a sting where a judge said she had been ‘cruelly deceived.’
The former X Factor judge admitted there is a ‘misconception’ around her that only N-Dubz fans can see through: those who follow her on Instagram and see her exasperated older sister dynamic with her bandmates.
‘This goofy, mothery T – which is the real me,’ she says.
‘So much celebrity happened over the years that it kind of got lost in translation. The general public will have a certain perception of me but an N-Dubz fan will know this completely different side of me, where you follow me on Instagram and see me doing stupid s***.
‘A hundred per cent there’s a massive misconception about me but not with N-Dubz fans. And that’s one thing that feels so amazing about being back. It’s very comforting to me. It feels like home, especially after what I went through for so many years.
‘So much anxiety built up, any time I went to do anything – whether it’s my own solo stuff or an appearance or even stepping on a TV show. I just felt like eyes are on me, the walls are up, the claws are out. And coming back to N-Dubz is this feeling of freedom, where you’re just loved for what you do and the music you make. It’s actually allowed me to open up and be more vulnerable again.
‘I’ve gone from having a deactivated Instagram for years to now, doing the stupidest s*** ever that I wouldn’t usually do in my day-to-day life and sharing it with N-Dubz fans because it’s such a safe space I can actually feel like I’m allowed to be vulnerable and the real me comes out more.’
Asked if she would ever consider a return to TV or other projects now she’s back in the spotlight, Tulisa hesitates and admits that while she would ‘never say never,’ it’s ‘not where my head is at right now.’
‘It’s baby steps, isn’t it? With time comes respect and the public perception kind of changes. It’s taken me a long time to get over all that past drama. The thought of going back to a place where I feel I’m feeding myself to the wolves, I’d have to be in a really mentally [strong] place to go back and do that.
‘Honestly, N-Dubz fans the last year and a half have changed everything for me internally – my mental health, the way that I feel, the anxieties I’ve had, it’s completely been lifted, like a weight off my shoulders, because of interacting with N-Dubz fans. It’s life-saving s***.’
It had seemed to fans that an N-Dubz return was a pure fantasy – sometimes rumours would crop up, but would be instantly dismissed by one of the former members – which Tulisa reveals was all part of the plan, as the group had actually been working together in the studio on and off for six years.
‘The really exciting part was sneaking into the studios when no one else thought we were going to do it. Over the years, every time there was a rumour Dappy would just be like “That is never going to happen.” But really we had been in the studio the day before,’ she laughs. ‘So we were just lucky we were able to keep it a secret.’
When the announcement came out of the blue that N-Dubz were back – coupled with a video of the trio emerging from a helicopter in London to the glorious sound of ‘Na Na Niii,’ the reaction was absolutely massive, which a delighted Tulisa describes as ‘so sick.’
Having come up with the idea of the video reveal herself, she says everything was ‘just how I envisioned in my mind, everyone went nuts for it. It was probably the most exciting part since coming back, that initial announcement and everyone going mental.’
The N-Dubz fanbase has changed just a bit since the last time the group were around: plenty of groups of parents who had got babysitters for the night, who would have been teenagers themselves at the last tour, for example.
But most striking for Tulisa was the number of teenagers and young adults showing up to the new shows, which she realised was because they would have been too young to attend their shows before.
‘Our ticket sales were for over 14s when we did the first tour. But we had fans who were as young as eight years old. So it was even weirder seeing the 20-year-olds, 18-year-olds come through. How did this happen?
‘I was sat in the hair salon hearing teenagers be like, “We got tickets for N-Dubz!” I was like – “Were you born?!”‘
As well as the absolutely massive reunion tour, the reaction to N-Dubz new singles have been ‘really positive’ so far – but it’s the album they’re really looking forward to.
‘We’ve never really been single sellers,it’s actually this, the album release, that’s crunch time. The real N-Dubz fans are album buyers, and it’s a great place to be in,’ she explains. ‘Hopefully we carry on the momentum and people love it as much as the old albums.
Their way of writing together has also changed somewhat, with Tulisa revealing the trio used to ‘isolate’ themselves when working on their own verses and seeing how they came together – but now are all collaborating on each other’s verses.
N-Dubz have essentially been together forever, since they were formed by Dappy’s father Byron Contostavlos, aka Uncle B, which will be a familiar figure to any N-Dubz fan.
The group were formed when they were children, with Tulisa just 11 years old when she was approached by Contostavlos to join Dappy and Fazer in the group – which she initially turned down.
‘Dappy and Fazer were doing it, and Uncle B told them they needed a female in the group,’ she recalls.
‘They asked this girl at school who could sing and she didn’t turn up. Then Dappy was like, “I know, I’ve got a cousin who can sing.”
‘Uncle B came and knocked on my door and asked if I fancied coming to the studio to sing with Daps and Faze. And I said, “No! I’m going to be a solo star. I am never going to be in a group!”‘
Laughing, Tulisa goes on: ‘And then he offered me 20 quid. And I was like “No, not worth it.” And then I bartered him up to 50. Took the 50 quid and did my first session and was like “Oh I kind of like this!” And that was it.’
‘You can’t imagine it being any other way. You need the balance of the female being in it … I’m giving it for the girls, they’re giving it for the lads, and then it comes together.’
N-Dubz became massive overnight as teenagers picked up on their unique blend of music on now-defunct Channel U, but back then she admits she doesn’t believe the group got the recognition they deserved from the music industry – but this has changed, because ‘when we started the dinosaurs were in charge.’
‘As we’ve all grown as a generation, people that were N-Dubz fans now have the jobs at the places we used to knock on doors for. Back then we were these teeny boppers who only the kids knew about, and the industry were like, “Who the f*** are these kids?”
‘The only thing they noted was the album sales. So they were like “Okay cool, we don’t get it but it sells.” Whereas now the people in charge are people that listened to N-Dubz. And it’s not just about N-Dubz, the whole scene has changed. People in charge listen to all kinds of music, British urban music – doors are getting knocked down, it’s crossing over to America, to Europe. It’s 100% different this time around. And with time comes respect. So that has definitely added to our legacy.
‘And to be able to come back and still have that reception has kind of solidified that status.’
The massively dedicated fanbase is a major part of this: Tulisa notes one fan, Demi, comes to every show and recreates every one of her outfits – even spookily guessing what the star would be wearing on stage that day and dressing accordingly, telling Tulisa later: ‘This is the level I’m at now, I know what you’re going to put on in the morning.’
There have been plenty of memorable moments for the trio since forming over 20 years ago, and a few of these stand out above all others.
Tulisa recalls the first time a proper crowd showed up to an N-Dubz gig, ‘the first where we realised we’d cracked it.’
‘There were 2000 screaming kids who showed up. It happened overnight, off the back of Channel U. And luckily Uncle B was still alive, he passed away shortly afterwards. But he got to see this moment.’
The other standout moment was the last day of N-Dubz’s last tour, where at this point they weren’t sure if they would ever do this again as they prepared to split up.
‘We sat on the tour bus and shed a tear, it was really emotional – a kumbaya moment. I’ll never forget that.’
Of course, N-Dubz did come back – even if it took 11 years – and are today celebrating their first album since 2010’s Love.Live.Life, as well as preparing for a 2024 tour.
And Tulisa has a message for all those fans who have been there from the start, and who may have just discovered the London icons since their return: ‘Listen to the new N-Dubz album, I hope you like it. And a massive, massive thanks to the fans.
‘We love you so much, we couldn’t do this without you.’
Timeless is out now
